A LITTLE miss was diagnosed with an incurable encephalon tumour aft her mum spotted the archetypal motion successful her walk.
"Playful and smiley" Olivia Szabo, 5, started "walking similar a drunk person" retired of the blue.
In September 2023, aft weeks of walking strangely, the tot fell implicit successful the playground and banged her head.
Citing her "mother's intuition", mum Marietta Kulcsar, 35, says she instantly knew thing was earnestly wrong.
But play visits to A&E proved "hopeless" - arsenic doctors kept sending her home.
In December, erstwhile Olivia's look abruptly fell to 1 side, she was rushed for a CT scan - which confirmed she had a ample tumour successful the backmost of her head.
Since then, the tot has needed regular rounds of chemotherapy - and doctors person said she'll person the tumour for the remainder of her life, arsenic they can't region each of it.
Marietta, a hypnotherapist, from Manchester, said: "After Olivia's fall, I took her to A&E, each week, for 2 months.
"The doctors thought it mightiness beryllium a urinary tract infection - oregon a stomach bug erstwhile she started vomiting a lot.
"Sometimes they'd nonstop her location with antibiotics - but mostly, they conscionable told maine not to worry."
In precocious September, Olivia had fallen successful the playground during playtime and her teacher told Marietta astatine the extremity of the day.
She'd been struggling with her equilibrium for "a while" and Marietta says she'd person to clasp connected to a partition if she needed to locomotion astir the house.
My 3 boys complained of headaches – they were each diagnosed with the aforesaid devastating encephalon information
"I noticed galore changes - the mode she walked was akin to a drunk person," Marietta said.
"When she woke up astatine night, she'd request to clasp the partition to get to me.
"Obviously, she's 4 - truthful I knew she wasn't drunk."
Olivia had besides started eating and drinking little - and visibly mislaid weight.
But doctors told her Olivia was good and an corruption was apt the origin of her equilibrium issues.
She said: "After her fall, it conscionable wasn't getting better.
"I asked doctors consecutive distant to springiness Olivia a CT scan - but they said no, due to the fact that they were disquieted she was excessively young for specified an aggravated exam.
"But the crushed I wanted her to person a scan was to spot if thing was going connected with her equilibrium - it was getting worse."
Mum's intuition
On December 22, 2023, Marietta noticed Olivia's look began drooping connected 1 side.
At first, the changes were "subtle," and no-one other could spot it isolated from Marietta.
But her "mum's intuition" was proved close - erstwhile that broadside of her look abruptly fell completely.
"It was precise hard due to the fact that I didn't expect thing similar that," Marietta said.
"We were with my sister, her kids, and Olivia's dad.
The astir communal symptoms of a encephalon tumour
More than 12,000 Brits are diagnosed with a superior encephalon tumour each twelvemonth — of which astir fractional are cancerous — with 5,300 losing their lives.
The illness is the astir deadly cancer in children and adults aged nether 40, according to the Brain Tumour Charity.
Brain tumours trim beingness expectancies by an mean of 27 years, with conscionable 12 per cent of adults surviving 5 years aft diagnosis.
There are 2 main types, with non-cancerous benign tumours increasing much dilatory and being little apt to instrumentality after treatment.
Cancerous malignant encephalon tumours tin either commencement successful the encephalon oregon dispersed determination from elsewhere successful the assemblage and are much apt to return.
Brain tumours tin cause headaches, seizures, nausea, vomiting and memory problems, according to the NHS.
They tin besides pb to changes successful property weakness oregon paralysis connected 1 broadside of the occupation and problems with code oregon vision.
The 9 astir communal symptoms are:
- Headaches
- Seizures
- Feeling sick
- Being sick
- Memory problems
- Change successful personality
- Weakness oregon paralysis connected 1 broadside of the body
- Vision problems
- Speech problems
If you are suffering immoderate of these symptoms, peculiarly a headache that feels different from the ones you usually get, you should sojourn your GP.
Source: NHS
"I said to him: 'Do you see, the broadside of her look has dropped?' "No 1 truly saw it - but I did.
"It's my mum's intuition, I'm ever with her - truthful I cognize erstwhile thing isn't right."
Marietta rushed Olivia backmost to A&E, and doctors took her for a CT scan, arsenic good arsenic an MRI the pursuing day.
This confirmed she had a "large" tumour astatine the backmost of her brain.
Hope for 'normal life'
Olivia's attraction squad instantly knew they wouldn't beryllium capable to get each of the tumour.
But connected December 29, they managed to region immoderate of it, during a seven-hour procedure.
"It was a precise affectional Christmas," Marietta said.
"We didn't bask it, astatine all."
Marietta was told she'd request 18 months worthy of chemotherapy - which is owed to decorativeness successful August 2025.
Meanwhile, her tumour has shrunk - and doctors person told her she whitethorn beryllium capable to unrecorded a agelong life, with the tumour arsenic a chronic condition.
SIGNS OF CANCER IN CHILDREN
CHILDHOOD crab is uncommon successful the UK, with lone astir 1 successful each 450 children diagnosed by the property of 14, but determination are inactive astir 5 caller cases each day.
Cancer symptoms successful children tin beryllium akin to different illnesses and tricky to prime up arsenic they whitethorn not beryllium capable to explicate however they feel.
Cancer Research UK says reddish emblem symptoms whitethorn include:
- An unexplained lump oregon swelling that does not spell away
- Unable to wee oregon passes blood
- Back oregon bony symptom oregon symptom that wakes them astatine night
- Seizures oregon temper oregon behaviour changes
- Unusual paleness
- Feeling bushed each the time
- Unexplained vomiting, fever oregon breathlessness
- Frequent infections oregon flu-like symptoms
- Change successful the quality of an eye
- Frequent oregon unexplained bruising
Cancer Research said the supra symptoms are usually caused by thing other but should beryllium investigated by a GP if parents are concerned.
Source: Cancer Research UK
This means she'll person chemo each six months, until she turns 9 - arsenic good arsenic yearly MRIs until the property of 16.
"She'll beryllium capable to unrecorded a mean life, 1 day," Marietta said.
"But we're cautious - if it starts to get bigger, we request to commencement everything again.
"We're hoping to person a amended Christmas this twelvemonth - but we can't beryllium further than an hr distant from the nearest hospital.
"She's warring to get her energy backmost - but connected OK days, she's conscionable similar she utilized to be."